Tuck forming apparatus



Oct. 11, 1955 N. STANDER 2,720,178

TUCK FORMING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 26, 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. NATHAN STANDER HTTOE/VE'YS Oct. 11, 1955 N. STANDER TUCK FORMING APPARATUS A m m mm e N m MA N S 15 t a N A M 5 k T H N BY W Filed Aug. 26, 1953 HTTOE/VEYS Oct. 11, 1955 N. STANDER TUCK FORMING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 26, 1953 INVENTOR. NATHAN STHNDEF? BY WW w ieiw T TO EMEY5 Oct. 11, 1955 N. STANDER TUCK FORMING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Aug. 26, 1953 INVENTOR. NATHAN STAN DER Oct. 11, 1955 N. STANDER TUCK FORMING APPARATUS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Aug. 26, 1953 II'IIII INVENTOR. NATHAN STANDER BY W W A fM HTTOPNY5 United States Patent TUCK FORMING APPARATUS Nathan Stander, Bronx, N. Y.

Application August 26, 1953, Serial No. 376,630

Claims. (Cl. 112146) This invention relates to apparatus for forming tucks and, more particularly, pertains to tucking attachments adapted to be employed on conventional sewing machines.

Tucks are widely used as an expedient for shortening and decorating various fabrics and sheet materials. Both industrial and domestic sewing machinery may be utilized to form tucks and, in order to improve the appearance and quality of the tucks as well as to decrease the skill and time required to form them, numerous attachments have been devised which fold, guide and gauge the work as it is passed through the sewing machines.

Present day tucking attachments are not altogether satisfactory in that they require considerable skill and attention on the part of the operators and lack certain adjustments which afford complete versatility as to the types of fabrics which may be accommodated and the sizes of the tucks that may be formed. Thus for example, the random occurrence of thickened or bulky portions in the work often necessitates the slowing down or complete stopping of the sewing machine so that these portions may be eased through the guide assemblies. design of many tucking attachments used in industrial applications is such that much of the responsibility for the successful operation thereof remains with the individual operators. Such characteristics of tucking attachments are not easily overcome without some sacrifice in the quality of the tucks or the rate at which they may be formed.

Certain of the above recited disadvantages in tucking attachments have been overcome by my copending application Serial No. 296,876 filed July 2, 1952 for Device for Making Tucks of which this application is a continuation-in-part.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide novel tuck forming apparatus which may be employed with a conventional sewing machine in formin g tucks by unskilled operators.

It is another object of the invention to provide tuck forming apparatus readily attached to a conventional sewing machine which lends itself to operation by unskilled operators for accurately forming tucks of a predetermined nature.

It is still another object of the invention to provide tuck forming apparatus of the above character which will accommodate fabrics varying in thickness and texture and form uniform tucks therein.

These and other objects of the invention are accomplished by providing a base member for mounting on the bed plate of a sewing machine and including tuck forming guide means, tuck guiding means and work controlling means positioned thereon. A tucking knife over which the fabric is folded is employed in conjunction with the tuck' forming guide means, the knife being mounted at a desired lateral setting. In order for the tuck forming guide means to comply automatically with such setting, it is mounted on an arm arranged to yield relatively to the base member.

The tuck forming guide means are in turn resiliently Further, the

2,720,178 Patented Oct. 11, 1955 mounted with respect to the arm so that it may yield independently to accommodate various thicknesses of fabrics. Resiliently mounted roller means are also provided in the tuck forming guide means in order to facilitate the passage of the material therethrough.

The tuck guiding means, which are preferably adjustably supported, may comprise two assemblies each including a pair of depending foot members which define channels for receiving a formed tuck. These foot members are so arranged that they may be adjusted to accommodate tucks of various widths and thicknesses and are supported through relative yielding or spreading movement so that the tuck receiving channel Will automatically enlarge when bulky portions of the fabric are encountered. When necessary, the spreading of the feet may be controlled manually by lever means readily accessible to the operator and which may, if desired, be manipulated while the work is passing through the attachment without stopping the sewing machine.

In order to smoothly move the fabric through the attachment, a driving roll synchronized with the sewing machine drive means may be provided to engage the underside of the fabric and cooperate with an idler roll above the fabric. The combination of the driving and the idling rolls aids the conventional means found on sewing machines for driving the fabric through the attachment.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood when the following description is read in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a conventional sewing machine carrying apparatus embodying the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the driving gears considerably enlarged and taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1 looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a tuck forming attachment constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of the attachment shown in Fig. 3 with certain elements removed in order to illustrate several important structural features;

Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section of the attachment taken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 3 looking in the direction of the arrows and showing the tuck guiding means in elevation;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section of the attachment taken substantially on the line 6-6 of Fig. 3 looking in the direction of the arrows and showing the fabric driving means in elevation;

Fig. 7 is a transverse section of the attachment taken on the line 77 of Fig. 3 looking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 8 is a transverse section of a portion of the attachment taken on the view line 8-8 of Fig. 5 looking in the direction of the arrows; and

Fig. 9 is an enlarged view of the fabric illustrating the manner in which it is stitched as it passes through a tuck forming attachment in accordance with the present invention.

Referring to the drawings and more particularly to Fig. l, a conventional sewing machine 10 having a bed plate 11 and a driving means 12 is shown with a tuck forming attachment 13 according to the present invention mounted thereon. A power take ofi pulley and belt 14 is coupled by a flexible coupling 15 to a gear box 16, positioned below the attachment 13. As shown in detail in Fig. 2, a driving roll 17, preferably formed with a scored surface, is driven by a gear train formed from the beveled gears 18, 19, 20 and 21. The driving gear 18 is suitably attached to the flexible coupling 15 while the final gear 21 is suitably joined to an appropriately journaled shaft 22 to drive the roll 17. It will, of course, be understood that the invention is not limited to this manner of driving the roll 17-for such drive may be by direct connection from the power take off 14 to the roll 17 or by other suitable m ans so long as the roll 17 is synchronized with the driving mechanism of the sewing machine 10.

Referring next to Figs. 3 and 4 wherein the tuck forming attachment is shown in plan view, a stationary base plate is adapted to be mounted on the sewing machine bed plate 11 by mounting screws 31 carried in slots 32. Integral with the plate 30 is a rounded fabric guiding carrier plate 33 which extends towards, the front of the sewing machine and receives and allows the fabric to be smoothly drawn thereover in being fed through the attachment. As shown in detail in Fig. 7, the plate 33 has a channel 34 formed on the lower portion thereof in order to receive therein a T-shaped flange 35 integral with a slidable extension plate 36, useful when extended in feeding large pieces of cloth to the tuck forming attachment.

As best shown in Figs. 1 and 3, a tuck forming knife 37 is supported by an arm 38 mounted at a pivot point 39 a suitable distance from the sewing machine 10. The knife 37' is formed with slots 40 therein for carrying screws 41 in order to adjustably secure the knife to the arm 38.

Formed in the plate 30 is a downwardly extending recess 42 carrying a roll assembly 43 which includes a roll 44 carried by a supporting member 44a and biased upwardly by a spring 45 toward the knife 37, as clearly shown in Fig. 7. The roll 44 assists in smoothly feeding the fabric through the attachment.

The plate 33 and the knife 37 are provided with coinciding openings 46 and 47 in which the roll 17 is disposed in order to assist in the movement of the fabric through the attachment, the opening 46 being of sufiicient length to 'permit adjustment of the knife 37. An idler roll 48 cooperates with the roll 17 and also is preferably formed with a roughened surface as described in connection with the roll 17. The roll 48 is resiliently mounted by a spring 48;: carried by a threaded stud and wing bolt 49a in a housing 49 which slidably receives an inner shell 50 supported by the stud 49a. A shaft 51 mounting the roll 48 extends into slots 54 formed in the shell 49 and is journaled in the inner shell 50. Retaining members 52 are joined to the shaft 51, as shown in Fig. 6 which illustrates the idler roll assembly in both the operative and inoperative positions. The slots 54 in the shell 49 allow movement of the idler roll 48 in order to more easily accommodate various thicknesses of fabrics by the tuck forming attachment.

Referring next to Fig. 6, an arm 55 is supported at a pivot 56, which is in turn supported by a double arm 57 extending from a platform 58. Since the arm 57 is integral with a tongue 59 formed with a slot 59a shown in Fig. 3, the entire assembly may be adjustably positioned on the platform 58 by wing nuts 60 cooperating with threaded studs 60a received in the slot 59a.

Springs 61 are attached to shafts. 62 and 63 on the arms 55 and, 57, respectively, to hold the roll assembly in the up position, shown by broken lines in Fig. 6, when moved thereto and to bias it towards the roll 17 when placed upon the fabric. A torsion spring 64, shown in Fig. 3, may also be mounted on a shaft 65 at the pivot point 56 to assist in biasing the roll against the fabric. It is to be understood, of course, that this is merely an illustrative spring arrangement, and other suitable biasing means may be employed within the scope of the invention.

The tuck guide assembly is shown in detail in Figs. 3 and 5 and will be described with reference thereto. An arched sheet metal. member 71 is formed with upright leg portions 71a and 71b. The free end of the leg portion 71a carries a contoured foot 72 adapted to engage one side of a tuck. The tuck guide 70 is completed by a secondsheet metal member 73 carrying contoured foot 74 at its, lower end and a lever or handle portion 75 at the upper end thereof. The member 73 may be attached to the. member 71 by a nut and bolt assembly 76 including a spring 77 interposed between the members urging them apart at the upper portion thereof. A second nut and bolt assembly 78 extending through the members 73 and 71 is also provided with a spring 79 which serves to bias the members 73 and the leg 71a together at their lower portions. 80a by an arm 80 integral with the member 71.

Springs 81 are connected between rods 82 and 83 which are in turn mounted on ears 82a extending from the member 71 and a slotted tongue 84, respectively. A torsion spring 80b is also found on a shaft 80c at the pivot 80a in order to bias the guide assembly toward the fabric. The springs 81 and 80b cooperate to resiliently bias the guide assembly 70 as described in connection with the idler roll 48. Thus, the tuck guide 70 is biased into engagement with the fabric when positioned operatively by the springs 81 and 80b and is held upwardly by the springs 81 in order to insert the cloth in the attachment.

The mounting tongue 84 is formed with a slot 85 therein cooperating with a wing nut 86 on a threaded stud 86a which extends from a platform 87 supporting the tongue 84. It is obvious that the guide 70 may be laterally adjusted in accordance with the spacing desired between the tucks. The tuck guide 70a is formed in a similar manner except that the contour foot 72 found thereon may be of equal length with the foot 74. Obviously, this is a matter of choice and such feet are formed so that the fabric may more easily be fitted therein and pass therethrough.

Also resiliently mounted on the base plate 30 are tuck forming guides 90 and 91, both of these guides being similarly constructed. Describing the guide 90 in detail with particular reference to Figs. 3, 4, and 5, a pair of rollers 92, carrying flanges 92a to retain the knife 37 thereon, are rotatably supported by shafts 93 in a U- shaped shell 94 slidably mounted in a larger U-shaped member 95, having slots 95a formed therein to allow the protruding shaft 93 to move with the shell 94. The U- shaped member 94 is resiliently urged outwardly by springs 96 carried on a threaded stud 96a extending through the rear wall of the member 95 and receiving a nut 96b thereon. The member 95 is supported in turn by nut and bolt assemblies 97 carrying springs 98, on a slidably mounted tongue 99, shown in Fig. 8 disposed in achannel 103 formed by an element 103a integral with the plate 30. Pins 100 carried by the tongue 99 and extending through a slot 103b in the element 103a are resiliently joined by springs 102 to pins 101 also on the element 10311. It is seen that with this arrangement, the entire guide assembly is urged outwardly by the springs 102 and will slide laterally if pressure is exerted through the tuck forming guide 90. The guide 91 is constructed similarly to the guide 90 and' therefore, will not be described in detail. However, the guide 91 has been shown without the nut and bolt assembly 97 and spring 98, the U-shaped member 95 being directly mounted on the tongue 99. It is to be understood that such direct mounting is an alternative arrangement and could be embodied in both of the guides 90 and 91. Furthermore, the resilient mounting of the guide 90, could be employed in the guide 91 if desirable. The guide 91 is also. provided with a curved car 104 integral with the member 95 to facilitate the entry of the fabric into the attachment on the knife 37.

In a typical operation of this attachment, the knife 37 is first adjusted on its supporting arm 38 so that in engaging the guides 90 and 91,, it, forces them as units to the right against the springs 102. In loading the attachment, the knife 37 is swung outwardly away from the. machine and the fabric folded thereover. The knife is then swung into operative position wih thefabric F as shown in Figs. 3 and 5 but with an absence of the tucks T1, T2, T3 and T4. The sewing machine may then be operated and the fabric moving means thereon will. be aided by the rolls 17' and 48 in drawing the fabric through the attachment. As the fold-edge of the fabric leaves the. back edge of the The entire guide 70 is mounted at a pivot point knife 37 and the guide 70, the needle 1011 will set the tucks as shown in Fig. 9, of a depth determined by the position of the knife 37. The employment of the rollers 92 in the guides is most important since it permits the fabric to travel far more easily along the knife 37 than if a sliding contact were established as in the tucking device disclosed in my aforementioned application. Furthermore, the employment of a driving roll aids in the smooth feed of the fabric through the attachment and provides for the formation of better tucks.

Upon the completion of the first tuck T1, the fabric is moved so that it will be engaged by the guides 70 and 71 which will pilot the fabric into the sewing machine so that the next tuck will be formed in the work in precise parallelism with the first or previously formed tuck. It is obvious that the spacing between tucks will be determined by the lateral position of the guide assemblies 70 and 71. Thus, by a simple adjustment of the wing nuts 86 easily accomplished by an unskilled operator, the guides may be moved a considerable distance to provide for various spacings between the tucks.

It is also to be noted that the feet 72 and 74 will spread apart to accommodate tuck portions of increased bulk, as might occur, for example, at points at which a seam traverses the tuck. If for any reason the feet do not spread properly, the operator has only to flip the lever 75 which will cause the foot 74 to swing outwardly, this being done, if desired, without stopping the sewing machine.

In the event a bulky portion of the work enters the guides 90 and 91, the resilient mounting afforded by the springs 96 and 98 will permit the rollers 92 to yield as might be necessary to pass that portion without adversely affecting the spacing of the tucks. In this connection, it should be noted that the strength of the springs 96 and 98 should, in accordance with the invention, be selected relatively to the strength of the biasing springs 102 so that the displacement of the entire guide assemblies 90 and 91 caused by the preliminary lateral setting of the knife 37, will be accommodated by the weaker springs 102. Therefore, with the springs 102 in tension, the sudden and momentary application of additional pressure on the guide 90, due, for example, to the pressure of bulky portions in the fabric, will cause the springs 96 and 98 to yield. The relatively higher inertia of the entire guide assemblies, the bearing friction in the slide mounting of the tongues 99 in the channels 103 and the tension of the springs 102 will serve to prevent, instantaneously, movement of these entire guide assemblies.

It will be understood that the apparatus disclosed herein is subject to modifications obvious to those skilled in the art. For example, the invention is not to be limited to the various resilient mounting arrangements shown, for other spring arrangements could easily be substituted therefor. Furthermore, the mounting slots 32 and mounting screws 31 could be replaced by suitable clamping means for attachment to the sewing machine bed plate. Thus it is obvious that the invention is not to be limited to the apparatus disclosed herein but is to be defined by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A tucking attachment for use with a sewing machine operable in conjunction with a tucking knife supported adjacent the stitch forming means of the sewing machine comprising a base member adapted to be attached to the bed plate of the sewing machine, a carrier member slidably mounted in said base member for movement transversely to the line of stitch formation, first resilient means for urging said carrier member in a direction towards the tucking knife, :1 tuck forming guide supported from said carrier member and including roller means adapted to receive the edge of the knife, whereby the lateral position of the knife may shift said carrier member against the action of said first resilient means, second resilient means included in said tuck forming guide for urging said roller means against the tucking knife, whereby said roller means will retract upon engaging fabric portions of increased bulk, tuck guiding means adjustably supported from said base member for movement transversely to the line of stitch formation, said tuck guiding means including first and second foot portions adapted to embrace a tuck which has been previously formed in the work, adjustable resilient means urging said foot portions together, manually operable lever means for spreading said foot portions, drive roll means mounted below said base member and adapted to engage the work through an opening formed therein, and an idler roll adjustably supported from said base member for movement relative to the line of stitch formation, the knife having an opening formed therein immediately below said idler roll when both are in operative position so that the work will be comprising a tucking knife positioned near the machine stitch forming means and being adjustable transversely to the line of stitch formation, a base member adapted to be attached to the bed plate of the sewing machine, means defining a pair of channels in said base member, a carrier member received in each of said channels for sliding movement transversely of the line of stitch formation, a tuck forming guide mounted on each of said carrier members, said guides including roller means for receiving edgewise said tucking knife, first resilient means disposed between said base plate and said carrier member for urging the carrier member toward the. tucking knife, second resilient means disposed between said roller means and said carrier member for urging the roller means toward the tucking knife, 21 pair of tuck guiding means adjustably supported from said base member for movement transversely to the line of stitch formation, each of said tuck guiding means comprising a pair of foot members defining a channel for receiving a tuck formed in the work, third resilient means for urging said foot portions together whereby the foot portions may spread to accommodate tucks of different bulk, lever means for spreading said foot portions, work driving means including a drive roll urged upwardly through an opening in said base member toward the under surface of the work and an idler roll supported from said base member, said idler roll resiliently urged downwardly toward an opening in the knife, said opening being disposed immediately below said idler roll when both the knife and the idler roll are in operative position so that the work will be disposed between said roll means and said idler roll.

5. In a tucking attachment, tuck guiding means includ ing first and second foot portions defining a channel for receiving a tuck, a first substantially vertical leg portion carrying one of said foot portions, a second substantially vertical leg portion for supporting the other of said foot portions, said second leg portion forming one side arm of a U-shaped strip having a second side arm, the strip being curved away from the first leg portion, a rod having an enlarged portion on one end and a spring on the other end, the rod extending through said first and second leg portions and the second side arm of the U-shaped strip with the enlarged portion and the spring urging said leg portions together to abut the first foot portion against the second foot portion and at least the lower segment of the first leg portion against the lower segment of the second leg portion, whereby the said channel may widen to accommodate tuck portions of increased bulk.

6. A tucking attachment as set forth in claim 5 including lever means extending outwardly from the upper end of one 'of said leg portions away from the other of said leg portions so that said foot portions may be spread apart by manipulating said lever means towards said other leg portion.

7 In a tucking attachment for use with sewing machines and operable in conjunction with a tucking knife supported adjacent to the stitch forming means of the sewing machine, the combination of a stationary base plate adaptedto be attached to the bed plate of the sewing machine, carrier means mounted in said base plate for sliding movement transversely of the line of stitch formation, resilient means for urging said carrier means in a direction towards the tucking knife, a tuck forming guide mounted on said carrier means and having horizontally oriented slotted means adapted to receive the edge of the knife, whereby the lateral position of said knife :may shift said carrier means against the action of said first resilient means, second resilient means included in said tuck forming guide for urging said tuck forming guide against the tucking knife, and tuck guiding means supported by the base plate and relatively movable therewith, said 'tuck guiding means being adjustably mounted on the base plate to be disposed at various distances from the'tuc'k forming guide transversely of the line of stitch formation to gauge the spacing of the tucks.

8. A tucking attachment as set forth in claim 7, said tuck guiding means including first and second foot portions adapted "to embrace a tuck which has been previously formed in the work, adjustable resilient means urging said foot portionstogether, and manually operable lever means 'for spreading said .foot portions.

"9. A tucking attachment as set forth in claim 8, includingwork controlling means mounted on said carrier for pressing the work against the tucking knife.

10. A tucking attachment as set forth in claim 9, said work controlling means comprising first roller means for engaging the upper surface of the work at the input side of the attachment, resilient means -for urging said first roller means downwardly against the work, and second roller means 'for engagingthe lower surface of the work at the input side of the attachment.

References Cited in the file of "this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 290,065 Kientoff Dec. 11, 1883 1,605,536 Fuchs t. v Nov. 2, 1926 1,679,363 Kohler Aug. 7, 1928 1,742,221 Roseman Jan. 7, 1930 2,428,421 i'Gronenberg 2 Oct. 7, '1947 FOREIGN PATENTS 3,218 Austria Jan. 25, 1901 609,589 Germany .Feb. 18, 1935 608,993 Germany Feb. 5, 1935 

